The Wheels on the Bus go round & round

Posted on05/24/2011|Comments Off on The Wheels on the Bus go round & round

Like other states, Ohio has a budget problem that our new Republican Governor is trying to fix. Discussions are taking place on revenue options for schools to prevent taxes from being raised to solve the budget problem. It’s been suggested that schools be allowed to sell ad space on the school buses.

If this occurs, I just know that Realtors® will be the first to buy ad space for the visibility throughout neighborhood homes. They’re the same agents who paste their face on park benches and grocery carts.

A twitter person questioned why schools didn’t just purchase smaller buses, since we seldom see a bus full of kids except for teams and bands. That started me to wonder why the design of school buses hasn’t changed for eons. Even though our cars have changed drastically and become much safer, school buses still look essentially the same as when I was a kid.

They’re high-profile, not aerodynamic, and still use the hard brown seats without seatbelts. I don’t understand why they need to be so high unless it’s to allow people to stand up inside.

I wonder if buses could be downsized to a Hummer-like long vehicle like a limo? Since many schools pick up elementary kids separate from the highschool kids, they’re carrying fewer students each trip out. Maybe two of the Hummer-type buses could replace one typical bus at less cost with greater safety built-in. How important is it to stand up in the bus vs the potential cost savings?

Does anyone know whether there have been any challenges to the typical school bus design? Is there a perfectly good reason for the design to stay the same? Or has no one asked the question as to why this sacred cow remains unchanged?